Enact law to protect doctors against violence: Harsh Vardhan to states

The continued agitation by doctors against violence by patients and their attendants got a shot in the arm with Union health minister Dr Harsh Vardhan asking states to implement a law to deal with the issue. In a letter to chief ministers of all states and Union Territories, Vardhan has asked for “strict action” from law enforcement agencies against assault on doctors. The Union Home Ministry has also asked the West Bengal government for a report after receiving multiple representations from “doctors, health-care professionals and medical associations” on the issue. 

Members of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) had on Friday written to Home Minister Amit Shah, demanding enhanced security and a national legislation to deal with doctor-patient violence to ensure a safe workplace for healthcare professionals. 

The issue of doctor-patient violence—a long-standing demand around which doctors' bodies have routinely mobilised themselves has, this time, acquired political overtones with the matter having turned into a face-off between the BJP-ruled government at the Centre and Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal. The Union health minister has blamed Banerjee for failing to control the situation, while Banerjee has accused the BJP of fuelling the agitation for their political needs. 

In his letter to the states, Vardhan has cited a letter (dated July 7, 2017) sent by the Union Health Ministry to chief secretaries of states that contains the decision taken by an inter-ministerial committee constituted under the ministry to review the issues raised by the IMA. In its report, the committee has recommended that the ministry shall suggest to all state governments to consider a new law to protect doctors against such incidents of violence, or enforce the provisions of the Indian Penal Code or the Criminal Procedure Code. “The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has raised this concern many a time. Since ‘police’ and ‘public order’ are state subjects, the government of India, on many occasions has drawn attention of the state governments for an urgent need for a robust criminal justice system with emphasis on prevention and control of crime,” Vardhan said. The minister also pointed out that a copy of the draft legislation titled 'The Protection of Medical Service Persons and Medical Service Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage or Loss of Property) Act, 2017' provided by the IMA was also circulated to the states with the 2017 letter. The draft law includes clauses on penalty and recovery in case of loss and damage to property.

Meanwhile, doctors at AIIMS continued with the "symbolic" protest by wearing black bands, bandages and helmets, even as OPDs, wards and routine operations were affected at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, Guru Tegh Bahadur, Bhagwan Mahavir Hospital and several other government hospitals due to the strike call by the Federation of Resident Doctors Association. The IMA has called for a nationwide strike on Monday unless their demands of a national law are met by the authorities.